To travel you do not have to wait for the time you go on vacation. Even on a workweek, there is a time for a trip. To diversify your weekends and to get new impressions and emotions you can make a fantastic trip embracing our programme "short breaks".

Take your friends or family, choose up to three cities you want to visit and make a fabulous journey. In this weekend tour, you can stay for a one or two nights in the places you have chosen. You can be on excursions exploring and admiring the cities during the whole day and enjoy breathtaking views of the places recollecting bright moments of your trip at night. From dawn till night you will be able to see how the cities and everything around you change. Morning day will present the architecture and the landscape in sunlight glory while night will show transformed buildings and streets sinking in illumination.

What is the first thing that comes to mind when it comes to souvenirs from Russia? Of course, it is matryoshka, balalaika, vodka and caviar. Oh, and a hat with ear flaps as well! However, the ear flap hat is now in vogue, and has ceased to be such a rarity, vodka can be bought almost anywhere in the world.

Numerous souvenir shops are vying to sell magnets, mugs and T-shirts with slogans and thematic images (flag and coat of arms of Russia, funny sayings, bears, portraits of politicians and well-known writers), sailor's striped vests, as well as handicrafts. Khokhloma, Gzhel, enamel, birch amulets and Vologda lacework… the assortment is huge! But when you make purchases, don’t lower your guard.
Some unscrupulous sellers may try to sell you cheaper and substandard imitations. Of course, most of the shops have certificates for their goods and buy them directly from factories and workshops.
To help you not to get lost in all this colorful variety and tell how and where it is better to buy particular products, we have prepared separate articles for you on Russian folk crafts.

It makes sense to look for more valuable and rare souvenirs in antique shops.
Old coins, porcelain figurines of the Soviet era, icons, clocks, badges, decorations - one does not know where to look first!
But even here there are potential pitfalls. Apart from the fact that the seller may seriously inflate the price of what you want to buy, arguing that it is older or more valuable than it really is, there may be problems taking it out of the country.

As of today, it is prohibited to take any items of cultural value (books, figurines, icons, pictures, etc.), created prior to January 1, 1964 out of the country.

Important note: items of cultural value do not include cultural goods of serial and mass production, or modern souvenirs.

However, sometimes even an item of mass production manufactured over fifty years ago may attract the close attention of the customs service. If you want to protect yourself from unforeseen delays and undesired proceedings (the item is likely to stay with you, which, alas, cannot be said of your nerve cells), you can send the purchase to your own address by mail, after packing it carefully to avoid damage. Make sure that the package has a warning sign if the item is fragile.

Are you a little confused with all this information? Our team members are always ready to help you navigate all the rules, addresses, products and prices!

You will definitely find something to your liking and within your budget with all the variety of great Russian souvenirs!

11:30 – gathering in the Moscowsky Railway Station terminal at the bust of Peter I with a sign “New Year’s Eve Fairytale”

Saint Petersburg is one of the most enigmatic cities. Its emergence on the world’s map is connected with some legends that have been accompanying the history of the city for over 300 years. Historians often argue over what is just a myth and what really did happen. You will learn about the court life in the Middle Ages, about palace coups, ambitions and insidiousness of their inhabitants. You will see the most mysterious places of the northern capital, where miracles still happen. The legendary sphinx (one of the most mysterious stone creatures of Saint Petersburg). On a par with it are the Kunstkamera (the Chamber of Curiosities) and St. Michael's Castle.
The Peter and Paul Fortress is the historical core of Saint Petersburg; it is a military engineering and architectural monument. Its integrated architectural ensemble consists of fortifications, including walls, curtain walls, bastions and ravelins, Peter’s ceremonial gates decorated with bas-relief "The Overthrow of Simon the Sorcerer by Peter the Apostle" by Conrad Osnera; the Botny house, which houses a replica of the boat of Peter I, “The Grandfather of the Russian Navy” (the original is now in the Central Naval Museum), the Mint building, the Engineering house, the Commandant's House. In the heart of the ensemble stands the Peter and Paul Cathedral.
Besides being a cathedral church, the Peter and Paul Cathedral played the role of an Imperial Tomb. Here lie the remains of the Russian emperors from Peter I to Alexander III, including the empress and some of the gran dukes. The crypt contains 60 tombs; each of them is a concrete crypt 3.2 meters deep, and an altar with an iconostasis, in which requiems were held only in the presence of the imperial family.
The prison of the Trubetskoy bastion was built on the territory of the fortress as a two-story building; a pentagonal building was erected on the site of the dismantled interior walls of the Trubetskoy bastion. In the prison of the Trubetskoy bastion the strictest system of solitary confinement was established, the purpose of which was the complete isolation of the prisoner from the outside world and other prisoners. Initially there were 73 solitary cells, and since 1878 they were 69. During the existence of the prison under the autocracy its cells were home to more than one and a half thousand prisoners.

Transportation is provided for the whole tour day.

3d day
30.12.16

10:30 – Meeting your guide in the lobby of the hotel Orbita.
11:00 – Meeting your guide in the lobby of the hotel Park Inn Pribaltiiskaya.
11:30 - Meeting your guide in the Moscowsky Railway Station terminal (for visitors living in the Oktyabrskaya Hotel).

Holiday tour "The History of the Christmas Celebration in Northern Palmyra" (Trinity Square, Ostrovsky Square, the Anichkov Palace, the Menshikov Palace, the Palace Square). Visit to the Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg - an Orthodox cathedral temple, located in the heart of the city. The facades of the church are located on Nevsky Avenue and Griboyedov Canal. It is one of the largest buildings in the northern capital. Its height is 71.5 meters. Its name carries an island in the delta of the Neva River, the bridge on the intersection of Nevsky Avenue and Griboyedov Canal, and the street that leaves the temple.
Visit to the St. Nicholas Naval Cathedral, which is the first navy cathedral that traditionally nourished the sailors of the Russian navy. It is one of the most remarkable monuments of the Elizabethan baroque church architecture. It is located in St. Petersburg, in St. Nicholas Square.
Visit to the Chapel of Xenia of St. Petersburg. In the early XIX century on the place of her tomb a burial mound was raised, but people who kept coming here, praying, asking for her intercession and patronage, often took some earth from her grave with them as a relic, thus, the hill gradually disappeared. Every new mound followed the same fate. Then a stone slab was installed on the grave. But the stone slab was gradually dismantled and its pieces were carried away by the worshippers. After that the decision was made to build a chapel on the tomb of Blessed Xenia.

* - the time is tentative; your guide may be delayed for external reasons.

Holiday tour "Ceremonial Petersburg ...". During the tour you will travel along the elegant streets and avenues of the city. You will see the majestic Palace Square, St. Isaac Square, and Senate Square, the Spit of Vasilyevsky Island flying over the Neva and many other things.
Visit to the ensemble of Palace Square.
Excursion to the Hermitage, one of the largest collections of world art. Visit to the State Hermitage. Winter Palace - the residence of Russian tsars that was built in 1754 -1762 under the project by Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli.
Free time in the city center.

Transportation is provided for the whole tour day.

5th Day
01.01.17

Late breakfast in the hotel.
Free day without excursion and transportation service.

6th day
02.01.17

Breakfast in the hotel
Meeting your guide in the lobby of the hotel.
Out-of-town trip to the town of Kronstadt, the Naval Glory of Russia, the legendary city-fortress, the naval base of the Baltic Fleet in the Gulf of Finland. During the excursion along the highway you will discover the history of the formation of the dam and its construction. You will take a close look at unique hydraulic and defensive structures, beautiful buildings and ensembles, such as the complex of the provincial houses of the XVIII century, the world's first dry-dock channel of Peter I, the Naval Cathedral of the early XX century, Anchor Square and a monument to Peter.

Transportation is provided for the out-of-town tour.

7th Day
03.01.17

Breakfast in the hotel
Meeting your guide in the lobby of the hotel.
Excursion to the Grand Imperial Palace. The majestic and refined Grand Peterhof Palace with its facade stretching along the terrace of almost 300 meters has a dominant position in the composition of the Peterhof ensemble, stitching together in a single artistic composition the Upper Garden and the Lower Park. "Spreading the wings" over the water extravaganza of the Grand Cascade, it unites and creates around itself a coherent system of alleys, architectural buildings and fountains.
Journey to the Russian village of Shuvalovka with an interactive program “The Russian Traditions”. During the program the visitors will discover the peculiarities of the wooden architecture of Rus. They will hear legends and tales about ancient crafts; discover the folk calendar, old traditions of everyday life and holidays of the peasants. Next they will be invited to immerse in the atmosphere of the peasant life together with the hut’s homemaker, participate in ritual games related to peasants’ holiday life. For example, they will fortune tell at Christmas-tide, like in the old times.

Transportation is provided for the out-of-town tour.

8th day
04.01.17

Breakfast in the hotel
Meeting with the guide in the hotel lobby.
Excursion to Pushkin, a splendid suburban Imperial residence "Imperial road".
Tour to the ceremonial summer residence Tsarskoye Selo, Catherine Palace tour. You will see the "eighth wonder of the world" — the famous amber room.
Farewell at the Moscow Railway Station.

Transportation is provided for the whole tour day.

Children are allowed from 5 years of age or older. Discount for children aged up to 16 years 1000 rub per tour.

The price includes: accommodation, breakfast, bus and sightseeing according to the program, entrance fees to museums, guide service.

Note: The Company reserves the right to modify the sequence of the program without changing the scope of the services provided. The duration of its individual elements can be changed on the eve of the departure or during the tour. Elements of the program dependent on climatic conditions or actions of authorities and organizations beyond the control of the organizer (traffic, local administration, etc.), can be excluded from the program, according to the actual situation on the route. Citizens of the CIS countries upon arrival at the hotel must present the admission form with the entry stamp! Registration of foreign citizens is paid additionally to the cash desk of the hotel.